Providing the complete picture of the global channel and programming content industry with detailed market sizing metrics including revenues for TV channels
and online services at worldwide and country levels, segmented by advertising revenues, public funding, carriage fees and direct-to-consumer subscriptions.

Detailed information on channel revenue and program expenditure. Revenue data includes splits for carriage revenue, direct to consumer subscriptions and advertising. Programming data covers spend on original content, acquisitions and sport.

The average Latin America (LATAM) household has more money to spend on entertainment in 2018 than they did a year earlier. As such, the addressable audience for pay TV is growing. However, this opportunity is being negated by a shift in consumer behavior away from linear TV to on-demand services.

Comcast has made a formal offer for Sky, valuing the UK-based satellite operator at £22 billion ($30.7 billion). Today's official offer of £12.50 represents a premium of more than 16% over 21st Century Fox’s offer for the 61% of Sky it does not own. Sky's independent board of directors has this morning withdrawn its recommendation of the Fox bid, making a battle for ownership of Sky between Comcast, Fox and possibly Walt Disney Co, seemingly inevitable.

Disney has launched online subscription service ESPN+, which will feature 10,000 live MLB, NHL and other live events. The service, which launched on 12 April, is meant to supplement existing linear pay TV channel strategies, and will feature content which is not available on the company's existing linear channels. It is built on technology provided by BAMTech, which Disney took a majority stake in last year, specifically to enhance the company's streaming initiatives.

Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) has reached an agreement with Telefónica to make a wide range of its TV channels and content available to subscribers of the Movistar Play, Telefonica’s OTT subscription platform in Latin America. The video streaming service has a presence across Latin America and offers both VOD and linear content as part of monthly subscription, as well as transactional movies.

Full year results for key TV operators in the US have shown that subscriptions to linear pay TV services are continuing to decline. Subscriptions to TV and online video services are estimated to have fallen by 675,000 subscribers over 2017 – a year-on-year decline of 0.7%. This represents an improvement on the previous year, which saw declines of over one million pay TV subscribers. The year did see growth in broadband-delivered live TV services such as DIRECTV Now, Sling TV, and PlayStation Vue, however.

Discovery Communications and Scripps Networks, two of the largest factual channel providers and programme producers in the world, have agreed to merge in a transaction valued at $14.6 billion.
The deal will bring together the parent company of numerous factual channels brands including Discovery Channel and Animal Planet, the Eurosport sports business and several European free-to-air channels with the owner of lifestyle channels Food Network and HGN and stakes in TVN in Poland and UKTV in the UK. According to IHS Markit Channels & Programming Intelligence, Discovery operates 64 channel brands worldwide, including 33 in HD, while Scripps has 24, of which 12 are HD.

U.S. regional telecom operator, Cincinnati Bell, announced a merger with Hawaiian Telcom for $650 million (including the assumption of debt). The merger will be a big boost to its pay TV segment, which will see IPTV subscribers at Cincinnati Bell jump from 141,000 to a combined 183,771.